Shelby: UFC offered Nurmagomedov bout vs. Ferguson at MSG

Sean Shelby hoped the fourth time would be the charm for lightweight giants Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson after three ill-fated bookings.

The UFC matchmaker recently revealed on "The Watch List" that Nurmagomedov was offered another crack at Ferguson at November's UFC 217 in New York City - only for the Russian to turn it down. That opened the door for Kevin Lee to face Ferguson for the interim divisional crown on next Saturday's bill.

"Just to clear things up, a fight was offered to (Khabib) Nurmagomedov (on) Nov. 4 and at that point we were trying to put cards together towards the end of the year. I was informed that he could not make that date and he probably wouldn't be able to fight until at least December," Shelby said, according to Damon Martin of MMAWeekly.com. "That left Tony without a dance partner and it's not just about one guy, it's about two guys.

"So we backed Tony up and Kevin Lee was there and I mean look at his resume as of late. He's a phenomenal fighter, he's doing fantastic. Right now, I think he's the hottest thing in the division."

Nurmagomedov was booked to face Ferguson for the interim belt at UFC 209 in March, but pulled out at the 11th hour due to a health scare related to his weight cut. The undefeated contender has since called for the winner of UFC 216's headliner, although the interim champ should theoretically unify the title in a future date with reigning champ Conor McGregor.

Ferguson and Lee meet for the interim crown on Oct. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.